


Caught in the Crossfire

by Sassirin



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Gen, M/M, Other, Policeman AU!, Suspense, Tragedy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-04-12
Updated: 2014-04-11
Packaged: 2018-01-19 01:14:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1449838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sassirin/pseuds/Sassirin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Levi is the Trost Police Force's strongest leading officer,and to him, Eren Jaeger is just the annoying kid living in his in his apartment complex that seems to love being around him. And it's supposed to be just that; but once Eren gets involved with a criminal syndicate, everything goes downhill and it turns out that no one get out of trouble without a few burns.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sounds Like Criminals

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is posted on Fanfiction.net too under the same username!

* * *

"… _The police are still lacking sufficient evidence and leads that can verify whether last Monday's bank height was really the responsibility of the Titans or not_ —"

As the reporter on the television continued on about a current police investigation, Levi sat to himself at the dining room table, huddled over a few sheets of paper that were scattered across the table surface. The sleeves of his long, white button-up were pulled and folded up until his elbows. His hand reached for an old, white-dented coffee mug and brought it close to his lips, his dark, sunken eyes remaining attentive to his papers as he took in a sip.

There was a lot on the papers that he had to go over—civil rights, laws, criminal psychology. A lot of stuff that dealt with subject like law enforcement and policing; they were a slight annoyance but the police examination was no laughing matter.

The effort wasn't smooth-sailing, though; a lot of banging and stomping was going on outside in the hall, and although he wouldn't say it bothered him from concentrating, it was easily noticeable.

"… _If things continue any longer, the police report that the case may have to be put in suspension until new evidence finally surfaces_ —"

"And that's because you guys are looking in the wrong places," spat out a tall brunette, clad in a casual blue jumper ensemble with a white inside shirt. A hand on her hips while the other pushed her glasses upwards on the bridge of her nose, her lips were pulled into a disapproved thin line as she continued. "If you guys just connected the evidence with the forensics team, then you'd be able to get a damn clue—"

" _Hanji_ ," Interrupting the brunette's rant, he looked up from his paperwork and tossed her a sideways glance, silent in his appearance but with a firm resolution. "Go and check what's going on outside."

"Outside?" The brunette—Hanji—repeated, confused, but then blinked herself out of it once the clatter of sounds and thumps suddenly became more clearer and distinct to her ears. "How long has it been like this? I didn't even notice there was going on!"

And it made sense that she hadn't noticed; ever since the news report on the Titans had sprung up, she'd been hell-bent on spitting out criticisms against the local police.

For about five months, the headlines and news reports had almost always included something about the Titans—a growing criminal syndicate running amuck in the city of Trost. They were nothing but a bunch of criminals that came out of nowhere, inconspicuous the first time they struck a crime and then suddenly asking for fame. The police had called them out as an odd bunch; the public was dubbing them nothing more than child's play that could easily be put away.

To them, their own as it's said—in this case, however, the public was nothing but dead wrong.

"That's a lot of noise for a Saturday afternoon. I bet that it's some kids playing ball or something, don't you think, Levi?" Hanji grinned, quickly peering over her shoulder to glance at him and then heading towards the door.

"Hn."

At the table, Levi merely gave a small note of indifference, fluidly returning his attention back onto his paperwork. He reached for his coffee mug again and sipped, putting it off to the side once again after he finished.

"Levi! Guess what?" From under the doorway, Hanji let out an excited squeal as she continued to peek out into the hall. "It looks like you've got new neighbors!"

"Fantastic," Levi responded, still maintaining his one-sided rapt attention on the papers in front of him. "How far down are they?"

"About two doors down, maybe?" Hanji said, looking all the more interested and curious as she continued stay hidden behind the door. "And it looks like it's a family!" she announced. "I'm thinking a young couple, most likely some kind of a doctor and a housewife. I'm guessing they're pretty humble considering their choice of living arrangements, and they might be from the countryside outside of Trost." Hanji grinned, once again peering back at Levi. "Oh! And it looks they have a kid too! I think it's a boy."

Again, for the umpteenth time, Levi hadn't bothered much with a response, absorbed in his studies. The fact that the one of the first police exams were coming up in less than a week gave more than an incentive in leading the entire core of his focus on meager topics that he'd rather not indulge. After all, his brain capability was nothing like Hanji's who'd finish her reviews in less than a day or two and not even with one cup of coffee.

Also, he wasn't one to personally go out of his way to meet his neighbors unless for a good reason. He'd met more than half of the neighbors around him with occasional run-ins, a short instance of eye contact and nothing else. Their names barely phased into his memory because he'd only heard of them once by hearsay, and by then, he'd only dub them by what he saw.

Next door on his right lived an old, elderly couple who spent their days tending to their small garden on their balcony as well as their three cats; sometimes they'd see him and smile but Levi wouldn't blame them if they consistently forgot his name.

In front of him was a family of four; the man of the house was a salary man who seemed to be reaching more than just a few bumps on the road, always screaming with his wife so loud that it could walk the entire apartment complex. Levi had only met him once to report that the man was too loud and bothersome for yelling so late into the night. It had only taken that one notification for the man to avoid Levi like a plague, and after that, Levi never spoke to him again.

Their daughters, on the other hand, were two high schools girls who were quieter than the mice that crawled between the walls. Levi often forgot that they existed but it wasn't if he does it on purpose.

And then, on his left, there was a young man in his late twenties that seemed to only be bent on spending the better half of his life playing virtual reality games—at least that was what Levi saw when he went to deliver a message from the landlord once. The guy was always holed up in his apartment so Levi barely saw much of him as well.

Neighbor interactions were rare and few which was why he decided to just introduce himself at some other point, if only to keep tabs on them in the case they were connected to criminal suspicions. It worked once—at one point, Levi had an inkling suspicion that the man who lived to the right of the salary man worked for an underground drug trade, especially considering the smell of it was clear as day but no one had the guts to inquire.

Levi never met the man, and obviously, that might have been the guy's mistake because Levi had the guts, the indifference, and the bluntness of himself to report anything that was criminally suspicious. For him, it had been a walk through the park when he made the report and provided the evidence.

That being said, his suspicions on them were fresh until he got a good look. Just because they had a kid didn't mean that they could be doing bad.

"Hey, Levi, someone's here to see you!"

Hanji said, moving herself next to the doorway and then opening the front door wide. A smile was still on her face as the door creaked to a slop stop fully wide open, and it had been at that point that Levi lifted his head.

In the hall stood a young, brown-haired boy wearing a green shirt and trousers, looking every bit of a countryside local as he bit at his lips.

The boy started, sounding hesitant but nothing close to nervous.

"Ah," he started, his green eyes looking everywhere else into Levi's apartment except on them. The boy's lips twisted into something that looked to be a mix of a nervous scowl and a quivering line, certainly making it obvious that the boy certainly had no clue on what he was doing.

"My…My mom said to meet some neighbors and here I am and that we just moved in right now and," the words just fell out of his mouth like he just wanted to puke and get it over with. "My name is Eren and…" There was a bit of stumble as he finished, but he still made himself to look as awkward as the bright orange tiles on the island counter in Levi's kitchen. "My name is Eren."

On the side, Hanji cooed and clasped her hands together out of delight, finding the Eren's awkward greeting.

"Aren't you precious?" Grinning, she came close to the doorway and leant forward, placing her hands on her lap as she tried to meet Eren's eye level. "It's nice to meet you, Eren! My name is Hanji," she said, pointing at herself and jabbing a thumb behind her. "And that guy over there is Levi. He's actually your real next door neighbor." She looked back at Levi. "Levi, you should say hi him too!"

At the table, Levi crossed his arms and leaned back slightly away. "Hi, kid," was all that he said as he stared Eren stared Eren down. "What's your name, again?"

Squirming in his feet, Eren answered, albeit a little unsure. "It's Eren?"

"Right."

"Levi, you're going to scare him away if you keep glaring at him like that." Hanji snickered before returning her attention back onto Eren for a moment and then at Levi again. Amused, she prodded a thought to Levi, "Why don't we go walk him back to his place? That way, you could meet his parents and get to know your neighbors?"

"No."

"Why not?" Hanji grinned, pointing at Eren. "It looks like they could be the normal neighbors you've always wanted." And then she snapped her fingers as another thought came. "Plus, we've also got a good chance to check them!"

"What does that mean?" Eren asked, curious as he peered up at Hanji. "Why do you have to check us? I swear, we didn't see steal anything.. My mom is especially good." His lip quivered slightly if only because that idea alone made him nervous.

At the sight of it, Hanji cooed once again. There were small pools of tears forming at the corner of Eren's eyes and it was pretty obvious that he wasn't aware of them. He looked as though he was trying hard not to be the least bit bothered by the suggestion but the clear, nervous and slightly desperate lip quiver was giving him away.

"We're checking you guys out because your introduction made it sound like your mom was a criminal sneaking up on us." Levi stood up from his chair and then crossed his arms once again.

From the side, Hanji shook her head with a smile on her face; Levi's sense of humor was horrible.

"Your mom's probably the criminal mastermind, isn't she?"

"No!" Eren shook his head rapidly, the locks of his hair swaying back and forth. "My mom isn't a criminal! Take it back!" The former nervous and apprehensive look that had entirely defined Eren just a moment ago disappeared and was immediately replaced by a scowling one.

A pout formed on Eren's lips as he stomped his feet consistently. "Take it back! Take it back!" The kid looked almost like he was to cry with the way his lip started to quiver and his eyes continued to stare up at him. " _Mooooom!_ "

And with that, Eren had run off back to his own apartment.

Hanji shook her head.

"Levi, you're terrible. Your sense of humor is horrible."

"At least I don't break out the shitty puns."

" _Orange_  you glad that I don't say them often, though?" The deafening and hardened stare that Levi tossed to her was nothing close to amused. "Alright, alright, are we going to meet to your neighbors and explain to them why their son just ran home almost in tears just a few minutes they moved in or not?"

"Then  _move_."

There was barely any resistance as Hanji's lips curled into amusement and tried to push away the strong urge to laugh.

"Greetings," she started. A snicker escaped her lips as she continued. "Are you the new neighbors that just moved in?"

"Why, yes," A dark-haired woman replied, an earnest smile on her lips as she bit back any remnants of surprise and curiosity in her expression. "I'm Carla Jaeger. My husband and my son, Eren, just moved in today." And as if on cue, she moved out of the way to reveal a cautious Eren gripping onto the back of her dress, keeping his full attention all on Levi. "Eren, I thought you said you already met them? Why are you hiding?"

Eren shook his head and then pointed a finger towards Levi. "Mom, that guy called you a criminal!"

"You're mistaken, kid." Levi cut in, eyes glancing down at Eren for a moment and then flickering to Carla, completely unmoved by the accusation. "I said that it was criminal for your mom and dad to decide to move in at this ungodly hour in the afternoon."

All Eren could do was gape at the obvious lie that Levi gave while Hanji's lips twitched into a knowing smile.

Another voice interrupted.

"I'm afraid that it really was a mistake on our part," a man that they guessed could only be Eren's dad stepped up, offering a smile as he placed his hands on Carla's shoulders. "We didn't expect city traffic to be as quite as busy than it was when we left early morning. But better late than never, right?" He chuckled low as he extended a hand out towards Levi. "Grisha Jaeger. It's very nice to meet you." He nodded towards the bespectacled brunette.

"Levi." Levi introduced, ignoring Hanji's addition of "And I'm Hanji!" as he continued, taking the handshake with a nod. "Welcome to the neighborhood. If there's anything you need to do, ask someone else in the front desk."

At this, Grisha laughed, accepting and taking Levi's joke in good stride. On the other hand, Hanji shook her head to herself—Levi's humor really needed work.

"I'm sorry, but may I ask?" Carla piped up, looking between Levi and Hanji, curiosity in her eyes. "Are you two…?'

"Yes," Hanji answered with a chirp. "We're students at the local Police Academy. We're also nineteen years old if that was what you were wondering." She finished with a smile. "You might see me often at Levi's place because we're placed in the same training unit."

"I see…"

Although Carla was a little perplexed, Eren was not. His eyes grew wide as he gazed in some kind of awe at both Hanji and Levi, jaw dropped. "You're police officers?"

"That's right, Eren!" Hanji grinned, pointing out a finger. "We're police officers in training, so obviously, we're pretty good guys!" And then she gestured towards Levi. "Levi can be a little too blunt at times so that's why he needs practice! Make sure you visit him  _whenever_  you want to, okay?"

"Okay!" Eren chirped, eyes glistening in excitement.

Meanwhile, Levi gave a hidden jab towards Hanji's side, to which the brunette uttered a small guttural noise but not quite giving out. His eyes returned back down onto Eren, who had changed from looking at him with uncertainty to something of admiration and high regard. He merely put it off as nothing, soon leaving the Jaegers with a just a curt nod of a farewell and returning back to his apartment with Hanji in tow.

However, little did Levi expect that Eren was going to be anything more than the annoying kid who lived in his apartment complex.

* * *

**Fin.**


	2. Go Home, Eren

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TIMESKIP - 2 Years Later.
> 
> Levi finds that someone has sneaked into his apartment when he turned his back. But it's not like he doesn't know what it is, though.

* * *

**[ Two Years Later... ]**

* * *

The room was engulfed in a near darkness by the time the clock read half past five o'clock in the morning, silent in accompaniment to the soundless, early morning that barely began to peek. A minute later and a muffled buzz sounded off from the side, coming from his overturned cell phone that had been forgotten on the night stand next to his bed.

Placidly, Levi slowly opened his eyes, drifting one hand over to rub at the both of them while his other hand reached out for his phone. He cleared his throat as he answered, "What."

"Good morning, Levi!"

" _Hurry up_ ,"

On the other side of the line, Hanji laughed for a moment, far away from the receiver as she continued. "I didn't mean to bother your beauty sleep, Levi, but," And at this point, her voice lowered, a serious gaze conjured up in her eyes as she looked behind her, over her shoulder at a sight that had gathered policemen and firemen alike. "A fire just broke out at Langner."

Levi brought himself sitting up fully, leaning against the bed's headboard. "What's the state?"

"More than just a third-degree burn, I'm afraid." Hanji pulled away for a moment and gave out some more commands to her squad. Things needed to be photographed, evidence documented. Almost immediately, she returned back to the phone, "Sorry about that. Listen, Erwin needs you down at the station earlier than usual today. At seven and a half sharp if possible; eight is when the meeting starts. Make sure your squad's on time too.  _T-class special_."

There was a silence on his part as he brought a hand up towards the temples of his head. There was nothing like a T-class special to get his day started. "Got it. See you then."

As soon as he ended the call, Levi made a quick text to Petra and then left his cell phone back on the night stand, swinging his legs onto the side of his bed and getting himself up standing. Until a moment ago, the room had been dark, silent in accompaniment to the early morning. A few minutes later and sunlight finally decided to peek through, even if just a little bit, gradually sinking about less than a quarter of the room in a soft wave of light.

The moment that his feet touched the cold, hard floor, he immediately went to shake himself and his body out of it—out of its numbed daze. He stretched his arms behind his neck, satisfied to hear a clean 'pop' from his stiff shoulders. There was a good burn in the small of his back as he stretched downwards, reaching for the floor fluidly and nimbly and placing both palms down up to the count of ten.

The red digital numbers of his clock read six in the morning by the time he had entered his bathroom from across and had shut the door behind with a twist of its lock, a towel hanging off his arm. He only glanced at himself at the mirror for a quick moment just before his fingers reached for the bottom of his shirt and pulled it over, sliding off the top off his head. The shorts and his undergarments came off in one fluid movement, stripped bare as he entered into his shower.

The morning was cold, a slight chill grazing the air and even he had to grit at his teeth from the feel of it. All the hot water that fell onto his skin felt good, droplets of liquid sliding down a toned abdomen and racing down its creases and indents to slowly graze the bare skin of his navel and legs. It warned his body, burned him in a way that felt satisfying.

Once it got too hot, it switched it over to the cold and he was fine with that.

A soft, black-pressed tie slipped into the formed looped and was then immediately pulled tight and firm, just tugged a few more times just to be safe. The feeling of its cold exterior had felt nice to his touch as Levi tried to adjust any misplacement of his knot. As soon as he finished, he took one step back away from the full-length mirror hanging on his closet door, his sunken eyes making sure that not a nook or cranny was out of place in his uniform.

His fingers ran alongside the buttons of his blue, long-sleeved police uniform, double-checking if each button had been popped securely. The cuffs of his shirt were folded accordingly; the bottom pants pressed nicely and clean without a wrinkle from being ironed and vacuumed at least twice. The shine on his black shoes glistened nicely against the bedroom's lightning and earned a low grunt of approval from him as he continued with his uniform scan.

Disappointment only came once his eyes landed on a noticeable small stain around the heart of his shirt. The fact that it existed was beyond him but it wouldn't stay long. It had taken not even one moment of hesitation for him to pull out a handkerchief from his pocket and attempt to rub out the spot away, dabbing a corner of it with some of his saliva. However, much to his clear disagreement, the stain was not yielding to his attempts.

A thin line formed on his lips as he immediately undid the top half of his police attire and went to throw it into the a laundry hamper in his bathroom. A new uniform was taken out of his closer later, the ironing- board pulled back from the other side of the closet door and subjecting the new top through two rounds of ironing.

The shirt was eventually slipped on over once it gained a silent nod of approval and the buttons were quickly done in haste for a new once-over of himself in the mirror. Finally settled, all that was heard as he grabbed his phone and wallet before leaving his bedroom and marching down the hall were the distinct clicks and tops of his shoes.

Levi entered into the conjoined room of his living space with his chin up, immediately heading towards his left for the kitchen. After leaving the hall was one rectangular-shaped room that was divided into three different areas—the living room taking the right side, the kitchen taking the lower left, and the dining room taking the upper left, each distributed accordingly. All it took was one quick turn towards the left for him to reach his small kitchen and then a few more steps forward to arrive to his smaller dining room.

To any other person, perhaps the one thing that would be noted was the fact that the kitchen looked more than ideal for something so small and cramped. It seemed that everything was spick and span—all the dishes were stacked against each other in the upper cupboards, surfaces clean and clear with not a speck of dirt to be seen. The pots and pans that hung off hooks on the walls glinted against the kitchen lightning, everything organized according to size. The kitchen sink looked almost brand new if not for one of the knobs being broken, but nevertheless, it appeared as if there was no place for dirt or stains on it.

As soon as Levi had stepped into the kitchen, he pulled out a loaf of bread and some butter from the fridge, placing it on the main kitchen island, its surface so polished and spotless. Two slices of bread were taken out and placed onto a plate he'd gotten, soon getting slathered with butter. Pressing the slices together and placing the sandwich on the plate, he turned around again to brew some coffee and been nothing but content at that point until the sight of leftover crumbs caught his eye once he turned back around.

There was a small bite missing from the corner of his sandwich, crumbs left as a trace around the plate on the island's surface. A small frown formed on his lips as he narrowed his eyes, turning around and reaching into the cabinet under the sink for a bottle of Windex and a dish rag.

Although anyone would say that it was a mysterious culprit, Levi knew all too well that there weren't many people that he'd invite into his home and neither was there any people living with him. The culprit was as clear as day to him, and as soon as he finished cleaning up the mess until it was unmarred, he put everything away with a clear command in his tone.

"If you're in here, you better come out now," he called out. I'm not even going to give you until the count of ten. Haul your ass out here now."

As he put the cleaning materials away, a small brunet stepped out into the open, coming out from the hallway with his cheeks slightly plumped until he swallowed. Just as Levi expected, in less than a few seconds, the boy immediately ran towards him, completely clinging onto his leg. When he looks down, he's met with the sight of the boy grinning up at him, a near full set of the boy's teeth missing.

"Corporal, corporal!" the boy chirped happily and then brought his small fingers up the corners of his mouth. He pulled and the stretched his mouth wide open, his tongue lapping at the empty spaces where his two front teeth should be. "Look, my teeth are missing!"

"That's great."

Levi bent down to meet the seven-year old's eye level, his hand ruffling the boy's head. "Now, how'd you get in here, Eren?" Although he was waiting for an answer, Levi stood up, snatching the sandwich plate on the island and making his way to the dining room table.

Eren followed along, but not before crossing his fingers over his heart. "That's classified information, sir."

" _Eren_."

"I can't say." Eren brought a finger against his lips. His eyes sparkled as he took note of the sandwich on Levi's plate. "Ah! I want peanut butter and jelly on mine!" And then he added. "And toasted too!"

Standing next to the dining room table, Levi crossed his arms, looking at Eren expectedly. "Then tell me how you got in."

A look of guilt crossed Eren's features as he dipped his head low. "Hanji made a key for me."

If Levi was a different guy, he'd face-palm himself at this mention—but he didn't, sanity all kept in place but just a little loose.

"Can I have a peanut-jelly sandwich now?"

" _No_. Go back to your own apartment, brat."

Although he said that, nothing stopped him from still going to the kitchen pantry and taking out two jars—one of peanut butter and the other of jelly. On the kitchen island, the toaster was plugged in afterwards and then filled with bread slices, a toasty scent slowly beginning to fill the air. At the sight and smell of it, another grin appeared on Eren's lips as his expression lit up, an obvious sign of delight swelling within himself.

A ding had come from the toast not a second too soon, and as Levi went to finish up on his brewed coffee, Eren scrambled onto one of the small chairs on the other side of the island, climbing up for the two pieces of bread and placing them onto a plate that Levi had put on the side. All that was left was for Levi to make the sandwich before the two finally sat down at the dining table, Levi with his own sandwich and coffee and Eren with his own.

A small twinkle of curiosity glistened in Eren's eyes as he watched Levi take sips from his coffee, sooner putting a hand towards it.

"Corporal," Eren started, with his hand reaching out. "Can I have some coffee too?"

"You'll have milk."

"But—!"

"I said no." And not another word of protest came from Eren as he watched Levi stand up for a clean glass and the carton of milk in the fridge. A cold glass of milk was slid in front of Eren in the next moment and his disappointment in this feat caused a slightly upset frown to form on his lips.

A bout of silence came over them for a while, neither one attempting to speak over the crunches and chews from eating their breakfast. It had only come to an end once Levi finally gave Eren permission to take a _small sip_  of the coffee.

Needless to say, Eren took the drink like a prize to his eyes, the cup carefully held close to his lips and tipping it slowly to take in more than just a sip. All of his expectations weren't met as Eren soon gagged out in disgust, lips souring from the bitter taste left on his tongue.

"Corporal, it's  _gross_." He spat with a whine, letting his tongue hang out.

"That's because it's for adult tastes, brat."

"I am an adult!"

Levi only spared him a moment before resting his chin on the palm of his hand and leaning forward.

"Say, Eren."

"Hm?" Eren was back to eating his sandwich.

" _What are you doing here_?"

Eren could not have looked more like a deer caught in headlines by the way he stopped and diverted his attention immediately, eyes just slightly wide in his obvious guilt. The sandwich was long forgotten; left on his plate as Eren continued to turn his head away, looking at almost every spot in the room.

Almost every day, or perhaps more than just a times each week, he always came over, dropping by Levi's apartment like it were his second home. There was no routine to it, but Eren was always visiting—in the mornings, in the afternoons, or sometimes at night.

"Eren, I asked why you're here."

"I'm hungry, sir."

"Then go home." Levi said, before reaching over and tapping at the table to get Eren's full attention. "And you know what I meant. How come you're not at school?"

There was a slump in Eren's shoulders as he slouched, looking guilty. "I got in a fight at school last week and," He paused, starting to divert his attention away once again. "My suspension started yesterday and I'm not allowed to go back to school it's over."

"Huh," Levi said, leaning back into his seat and crossing his arms. "Now, why are you here in my apartment?"

"I'm grounded too."

"Does your mother know you're here?"

"… _Yes_?"

"Alright, and what did she say?"

"Have fun?"

"Eren."

"Yes, corporal?"

" _Go home_."

Levi finished, firm and resolute in his tone as he stood up and grabbed his empty plate and cup, heading out to put them away in the sink. "Finish up and go home. Or take it and go home. Doesn't matter what you choose, just  _go home_."

While Eren continued to slowly finish up his sandwich, Levi glanced at his cell phone and noted the time—it was already about fifteen minutes past seven o'clock. There was a hustle in his steps as he made sure everything was set for the day—all doors closed and locked and anything important secured.

"Eren, give that key to me." Levi held his hand out. "I can't have you be in here alone."

A little reluctant, Eren reached for his pocket and took it out, placing it into Levi's open palm with just a little bit of hesitance and some pleading in his eyes. However, having no for an answer was clearly nothing that Levi would accept, so Eren let go of it with his head down, disappointment in his eyes.

"What are we gonna do now, corporal? Can I go with you to the police station—"

"No," was all Levi had said before swooping down and picking Eren up like he was as light as a feather. A sound of protest escaped Eren as Levi hauled him out of the apartment, carried under Levi's arm like a package.

"I'm going to work and you're going back to your  _own_  apartment." Levi says as he locked his apartment door and then spun on his heel, strolling down the hall in the direction of Eren's apartment.

"But—"

" _No, buts_."

All of Eren's protests went unheard as Levi continued to carry him back home. "How's your sister and the Arlert kid?"

"Mikasa and Armin?" Eren scrunched his face up in curiosity. "They're in school, so it's boring." A look of endearment crossed his features as Eren pleaded, "Can't I hang out with you at the station?"

"You can't." Levi stopped in front of Eren's apartment, standing behind the boy as he opened the door. Carla Jaeger first looked up in surprise to see Levi standing there before it dwindled into a scolding expression as her eyes caught sight of Eren.

"I'm so sorry, Levi. I thought he was in his room the entire time." She apologized, tossing a look to Eren as she ushered him inside. "Eren, apologize for bothering Corporal Levi."

"I'm sorry…"

If Levi were a different sort of man, he wouldn't accept anything as simple as that.

But he found himself kneeling down in front of Eren, his hand reaching out and ruffling at the boy's hair. "If you're going to get into fights, do it where no one could see you and get you in trouble. That way, you woudn't get detention and always end up in my apartment when you're bored, brat." And then he stood up, lips pursed together as he gave a quick nod to Carla. "There are a lot of things going on nowadays, so it's not safe to let him go out without anyone knowing. The same thing goes for Mikasa."

As soon as he said his farewell, there was an obvious pause in his steps as he then muttered, "Be careful and  _stay at home_ , Eren."

And with that, Levi left.

* * *

**Fin.**


End file.
